Interests

If you've regularly watched the various Nintendo Direct videos over the last few years then you're more than likely familiar with Damon Baker. He's been the face for presenting indie games on Nintendo consoles ever since Dan Adelman moved on from the role in 2014, and sadly, his time is also now coming to an end at the Big N.
Baker announced his departure from the company on Twitter today, and while he gave no specifics on what lies next for him, he expressed excitement for the next opportunity as well as gratitude for the many developers, publishers, influencers etc. that he had worked with over the years.
While Adelman was known for being the first point man at Nintendo who helped establish a platform and communication line for indie games, Baker will be remembered for his cheery disposition and sophomoric efforts in continuing that legacy on the 3DS, Wii U, and more recently, Nintendo Switch. There's no word yet on who his successor will be, but you can bet we'll be introduced to them in a Nintendo Direct (or at E3) during 2019.
Source: Damon Baker (via Twitter)
Are you sad to see Damon Baker leaving Nintendo?

Developer: Tribute Games
Publisher: Tribute Games
Platform: PC (Steam), PS4 (PSN)
Release Date: March 25, 2014
ESRB: M for Mature
You might not remember it, but in 2012, Tribute Games ran a Kickstarter for an awesome-looking arcade action game called Mercenary Kings. It took a while to release but certainly not as long as some other crowdfunded projects out there. Now that the game is out we can appraise how successful it was at meeting its goals, or more importantly, how fun the game is regardless of intent.
Mercenary Kings is a 2D action platformer with roots in classics such as Metal Slug and Contra. The spirit of these titles is kept alive thanks to pixelated artwork and similarly fast gameplay. After selecting from a list of missions, you set off to a stage to complete its given goal. Usually, orders are pretty simplistic. Find a certain amount of item, person, or take someone out and then head back to home base to select a new mission. The basics are simple enough, but there“s definitely more to it than that.
Between missions the player can upgrade their weapons, get their goods modded, and stock up on other supplies. One weird facet is a simple crafting mechanic which facilitates upgrades. No, it“s not like Minecraft. All you have to do is collect craftable objects during missions and then bring them back. Items are all over the place, either popping out of enemies as they die or locked in easily-breakable chests. Thankfully, there“s no limit to how much of the crafting stuff you can carry. The same is not true for more mission-imperative items.
With that said, you can easily ignore most of this stuff and simply get to shooting up everyone in sight. Enemies come in a handful of types such as sniper, robotic snail, and other obvious cannon fodder. Each has their own tactics for efficient termination, but often you can employ the same general ones. For many characters, simply ducking and waiting between bursts of fire is good enough. It“s a shame that "waiting" is at all a part of the gameplay, though, considering Mercenary Kings wants to be a totally frantic experience.
When the game is at its best, you feel like a real badass. After getting the basic mechanics down it is easy to work through enemies without a scratch. It“s not too hard thanks to the fact that enemy bullets apparently fly in slow motion. For whatever reason, there is an active reload mechanic, though, which can lead to trouble. During each reload session you can cut down on time by hitting the reload button at the right time with an on-screen prompt. Because the prompt always shifts the "best" spot, you“ll need to keep an eye on it. As such, you might be thrown temporarily out of whack with the rampant destruction around you.
This may be just one unfortunate design decision but the more glaring issue is the missions themselves. As previously stated, there are a few types that reoccur a ton. They could effectively be considered "fetch quests" in many instances since you just need to find their markers on the map and head there. With little variety in general gameplay, Mercenary Kings can become a very tiresome experience indeed.
It“s a tremendous shame considering the game otherwise has a great deal of visual polish. With art by famed pixel artist Paul Robertson it stands as one of the most attractive pixelated indie games to date. However, there is a weird proclivity to make nearly every female character in game have tremendous, jiggling breasts despite characters“ otherwise chibi-style frames. If you don“t mind (or, instead, enjoy) that then the art will probably appeal as 100% awesome. The soundtrack is also suitably awesome for a modern 2D action game.
Although the gameplay is incredibly repetitive, you may find it a ton of fun when getting together a group of friends to play. Local co-op includes slots for four players and amps up everything. As bullets spew all over the screen, you“ll find accomplishing missions much easier than before. This changes them from being chore-like to entertaining experiences. You can also play online but, again, you“ll want to set up a time between friends. Strangely, the online player base seemed quite dead - or I was just online at all the wrong times.
There was so much work done to make Mercenary Kings look and feel like a very cool retro game for the modern age. But there are still points where it falters. Those who enjoy (or can look over) repetitive missions cannot ignore the bugginess. On nearly every gameplay session the game would crash. This is purely in regards to the PC version. Thankfully crashes were always upon mission start rather than during one, but it was still an annoyance.
In many ways, Mercenary Kings is a polished, entertaining product. It has excellent artwork, imaginative bosses, and fun references to other games. Gameplay is also easy to get a grasp of. However, thanks to the decisions to limit the game in scope via dull missions, the appeal quickly starts to wear off. Those who have the option to should play local or online co-op to enjoy the entire game. Otherwise, you“ll likely find yourself worn out before long.
Pros:
+ Mastering the game feels very rewarding
+ Lovingly detailed pixel art
+ Online and local co-op for increased mayhem
Cons:
- PC version seems prone to crashing
- Missions are far too repetitive
- Active reload mechanic is an unneeded annoyance
Overall Score: 6 (out of 10)
Decent
Mercenary Kings had a lot of promise and partially lives up to expectations. Just don“t go into it anticipating the next Metal Slug and it“ll satisfy your 2D action platformer needs.
Disclosure: This game was reviewed using downloadable Steam code provided by the publisher

Developer: K Bros Games
Publisher: K Bros Games
Platform: PC and Mac (Steam)
Release Date: October 28, 2015
ESRB: RP for Rating Pending
Official Website
In the realm of video games, the independent scene has opened the door to a countless number of developers who otherwise would probably not have gotten the chance to release their dream games. Sometimes the result is a masterfully-crafted, one-of-a-kind work of art, while other times you get quite the contrary. And then you get games that are somewhere in-between. Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins -- episode one of a four-episode game -- is somewhere in that gray area.
Speaking of gray areas, the game itself has plenty of those. That's one thing you'll notice right away, and you'll love it. In fact, Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins has quite a few things to love about it. But as it's floating somewhere between a masterpiece and a pile of garbage, in a Limbo of sorts (the similarities with the game Limbo is purely a coincidence and had no bearing on what I wrote here), the game also has quite a few things to hate about it. So then, is it worth playing?
Albert & Otto's plot is both darker than I expected and better than I expected. The game opens up with the sister of the protagonist -- the Albert of the game's moniker -- sitting outside their house with her beloved stuffed bunny Otto before a mysterious shadow comes by and whisks her away. And so Albert, armed with a gun for some reason, sets out to save her. Early on, you find Otto, alone, and take him along for the ride to help you on your journey. But throughout that journey, through letters picked up along the way with pictures drawn by none other than your sister, you start to learn that what's going on goes much deeper than a simple damsel-in-distress story.
Much like Limbo, the story of this game is told very quietly. There's no text or voice that tells you what's going on, and yet it's not all that difficult to figure it out. You can piece together what really happened to your sister fairly easily (as much as episode one reveals, at least), and if you're perceptive enough, you can also tell that the game is set in pre-World War II Germany. Although, I kinda just told you, so I guess you don't have to be all that perceptive...
Anyway, the dark nature of the plot and setting make the story of Albert & Otto quite compelling. And even though there are aspects of this game that will infuriate you to no end, you might find yourself too interested in the story to call it quits until the credits roll.
I mentioned before that you'll love the grayness in the world of Albert & Otto. And while you may have a different taste in art styles, it's most certainly what I liked most about the game. Inspired by the early stop-motion works of Tim Burton, nearly the entire game is in black-and-white with a few exceptions, such as Otto himself being red -- reminiscent to the little girl wearing the red dress in the movie Schindler's List (which interestingly also takes place in Germany, only during World War II). The minimalist aesthetic adds a lot to the game's somewhat depressing tone, which all makes for a pleasantly atmospheric experience.
The music in Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins also does a nice job in complimenting the plot and setting, lending itself well to the atmospheric nature of the game. It's nothing that really stands out as anything more than the game's background score, but it's a score that fits the experience nicely. Especially when you hear who I assume is your sister humming every so often, which I find to be beautifully eery.
But not all is well with Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins. While the story is intriguing and the aesthetics beautiful, where the game falls short lies within its gameplay. Look, I'm up for a challenge and all that, but there's a difference between a well-crafted challenge and a cheap, unfair challenge that relies less on thought and skill and more on trial-and-error. I liked some of the puzzles, since the game does have some well-crafted, skill-based ones, but I found myself dying far too many times while attempting a lot of them. Mostly because quite a few puzzles give you very little time to think about the solution. Like with the two bosses in this particular episode.
It's infuriating that you have to keep dying just to solve a puzzle. And in the case of the second boss, once you FINALLY beat him, a task made unnecessarily difficult thanks to the game forcing you to move almost impossibly fast, the game throws a bird at you that you can't see because it's off-screen until it attacks you and you can't hear because the end of the boss song is too loud. And it wouldn't be that big a deal if the checkpoint system was thought out more logically. There are simpler moments when checkpoints are very close together, but then when you need a checkpoint the most, you don't get one and have to restart way, way back if and when you die.
It also doesn't help that there are some problems with the game's physics. Your ability to levitate objects gets extremely frustrating when the object you grab starts moving around wildly and it takes too much time to calm it down. It's not that bad during puzzles you can solve at your own pace, but it becomes a grave annoyance during the ones with very short time limits. There's also one aspect that I just found oddly sloppy from a development standpoint, where when you die and go back to the last checkpoint, you start moving again before the previous event is even over. I appreciate fast loading times, but at least give the world time to catch up with the player.
With all of this game's downsides in terms of gameplay, though, I will give it kudos for one thing; there's an area where you have to use a burning sheep as a torch to see in the dark. Now THAT is awesome. I can't say I've done that in any other game before.
Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins isn't a bad game, but it does have problems that unfortunately weigh it down, keeping it from being as great as it potentially could have been. The story is great, though, the game has a gorgeous art style, and the score compliments the game's atmospheric tone nicely, so it certainly has its upsides. It's just unfortunate that I didn't like this game as much as I was hoping to. Hopefully the problems are dealt with and episode two turns out better. As for episode one, I'd say if you have $5 to spare, it's a decent enough investment. If you like Limbo, then this game is worth trying.
Pros:
+ Very deep and symbolic story, however quietly it is told
+ Gorgeous Tim Burton inspired art style
+ Beautiful score that compliments the atmospheric tone
+ USING A BURNING SHEEP AS A TORCH
Cons:
- Cheap, unfair challenges that rely too much on trial-and-error
- Problems with the game's physics
- Some sloppily-developed parts
Overall Score: 6 (out of 10)
Decent
With an intriguing story and a beautiful aesthetic, Albert & Otto: The Adventure Begins has its upsides. Unfortunately, its downsides keep it from being as great as it potentially could have been.
A downloadable code was supplied by the publisher for this review

http://www.polygon.com/2015/5/19/8624665/big-indie-kickstarters-are-killing-actual-indies
I don't usually post about Polygon articles, but this is a pretty great read about how the big indie Kickstarters are deflating actual costs to make their Kickstarter a success, which is ruining peoples' perceptions of the actual costs to make a game in the process.
I've known about this before (and I'm sure some of you do as well) but the op-ed does a good job of breaking everything down as to why it's a bad thing for smaller indies who really are using the money as a workable budget and don't have pre-existing funding from another source.
If anything, hopefully this will help Kickstarter implement some kind of necessary disclosure that Kickstarter campaigns will need to comply with beforehand, but that will probably kill some of their momentum in the process and they'd be sabotaging themselves by doing so, so... who knows what will happen.
Anyhow, what are your thoughts on this?

It might be hard to recall, but there was a time when a program by the name of Steam was detested by gamers. Alongside Valve“s release of Half-Life 2 was a new requirement that players needed Steam in order to access the title. However, the software barely had any functionality at all and was prone to crashing. This was in 2004. Today, invoking Steam“s name results in a very different opinion.
Many gamers flock to Steam as their number one choice for purchasing digital PC games. In fact, there are many out there who go so far as to state they won“t buy a game until it has come to Steam. Yes, you can add your own game files to the program and launch through it, but that isn“t the same. There“s something to actually owning a game on Steam and increasing that collection amount. Of course, then there“s the much-loved Steam holiday sales which through copious deals around day after day, some of which price games at incredible discounts.
Valve has had a very good last few years thanks to Steam. But it seems like it might soon begin to fall out of favor with its massive user base. A handful of policy changes have been rolling out over the past few years which are now becoming a large portion of the store. These include the Steam Greenlight and Early Access initiatives. Both seek to allow more titles onto the service without having to go through Valve“s slower and one at a time approach of the past.
But shouldn“t more games being made available be purely positive? Yes, it is exciting that any game has the chance at Greenlight success. However, there are many issues with the program (that Valve itself acknowledges). As long as Greenlight stays as is, however, these issues will remain as sticking points. One of the biggest issues is the fact that it ends up being a popularity contest. Games that best know how to market themselves, have an existing fanbase, are able to bribe users, or happen to be from a popular genre (horror) always take the lead.
Well, the point of Greenlight is to let the players choose, isn“t it? The main problem with that is the majority audience is simply unaware of what they“re voting for in droves. Sometimes it“s obvious, such as a well-known mobile game or indie success outside of Steam. Then there are other games that provide gorgeous screenshots or cool concepts that get voted up into being Greelit quickly. And then they come out andâ€¦ it“s not pretty.
Many Greenlight games are excellent and add a much needed facet of the Steam Store. However, there are other games that are absolutely broken or horrendous in other ways that make it through. Managing to fool players is rewarded and Steam isn“t able to say no. After all, they can“t exercise quality control as that goes against the rules of Greenlight. While this is a great positive for small games that otherwise would never get past Valve, but also lets in drivel. Without mentioning names, I have already wandered into many Steam Communities to see players distressed, annoyed, or rightly angry at developers for not fixing their clearly broken titles. There were some questionable games on Steam before, but at a lesser amount than there are now.
Alongside this trend is the Early Access program. Steam devised it as a way to get currently in development games onto the store. By doing so, the developers may speak more directly with fans, gauging their desires as well as getting reports on glitches. At its core, it is a very helpful service for developers and a neat way for players to feel like they“re helping shape a product. What could go wrong?
So far, very few games have made it out of Early Access so it“s hard to tell where this will lead, but right now there“s a lot of trouble. Some developers seem keen on squashing any criticism on their respective Steam Community, completely voiding the point of being on Early Access. Others have in the past asked for egregious amounts of money. There“s no guarantee that these games will even ever reach a finished state. As no one has outright stated they quit development, we can“t tell how Valve will or will not choose to reprimand them. Some games are progressing nicely, while others appear to have gone live at super early states and not gotten far since.
On one hand, it is an exciting prospect that Steam will eventually be a very â€œopenâ€ storefront. However, thanks to many poor quality games arriving, users are becoming more cautious with their purchases. Getting burned by a purchase once might not deter a user, but after a few stinkers who knows? Steam“s audience is vast and has been built up by the promise of good games at (often) great prices. With an increasing amount of broken projects though it is aiming to hurt that image which took so long to build up.
Will as many users purchase Steam titles because they simply like the synopsis, concept, or selected screenshots? It seems this will not be as frequent as it has been so far. Then again, what can be done about it? The concept of Steam being open to all developers is fantastic but proves to be much harder to manage in reality. We“ll have to see how everything continues to evolve. We“ll also have to see whether the current diehard Steam users will continue to lavish blind affection onto Valve. As a user, be sure to do your homework before buying any new games on Steam. For all the great new releases coming out, there are always going to be a handful that don“t deserve your money.

Last Spring, a Kickstarter for an alpaca-themed game called Alpaca Party was brought to our attention, and now—several months later—we've had a chance to interview the studio behind it, Meow Puff Games, as represented by Jessica Zamora (aka "izzybird").
_____________________________________________________________________
GP: So I heard you guys really like Alpacas; what brought about this love for the furry critters?
JZ: Alpacas are super cute and they're pretty weird, so we instantly loved them! Also, they aren't just for looks (like a cat); they can be shaved for riches! But not really in real life because there's a lot of reality that ruins dreams, BUT in a game you can totally live off of alpaca wool riches. The simplicity is part of the fun [in my opinion]. :3
GP: Obviously your Kickstarter was successful, what was that process like for you? Did you have any stand-out experiences during the funding period, or after?
JZ: It was pretty stressful; you put yourself out there and it's scary to think of not only failing but doing so publicly AND with a permanent archived website.
GP: Did you have any stand-out experiences during the funding period, or after?
JZ: I remember seeing one woman backed up for ~$300 (I think?) and we were so surprised because it wasn't someone either of us knew [in real life]; which is totally crazy!!
GP: Would you consider Kickstarter for your next project?
JZ: YES!!!!! We would definitely want to utilize Kickstarter again! Honestly, I feel like it was our intention all along to get to a point where we can make a larger scale project (which requires more money), but we wanted to prove to the world/internet that Meow Puff Games can deliver a small scale project first. Because seriously, there are so MANY Kickstarters out there that have screwed people over; as a backer, I'm more hesitant to hand out help now because of them.
GP: Congrats on your Android launch! When can iOS users expect to join the Alpaca Party?
JZ: Excellent question!! (This a standard I-Don't-Know response, hah!) Right now we are waiting for Apple to respond to us regarding IAP contracts, so we're probably looking at a February release. I'm not going to rant about Apple, it does take longer and the barrier to entry is a pain, but I really do believe the quality on the App store is higher than on the Play store.
(My [point of view] does not represent all of Meow Puff Games, and only represents myself Jessica.)
GP: Have you considered any other platforms?
JZ: Alpaca Party is definitely a mobile/tablet-designed game so in that regard we have considered Windows phones, but we don't have any devices to test on [at the moment], and since there are so few Windows devices it's not really worth the amount of effort.
GP: During my visits to Japan I've become aware of the Alpaca phenomenon that seems to stem off the Alpacasso plush toys. Did these influence your art style at all, or was it something else entirely?
JZ: Yes! I actually own three Alpacasso plushies!! (one is really big X___x) They're so cute and I love their adorable faces! These alpaca definitely inspired our kawaii-themed alpaca art, along with a mixture of our artist's own person flavor! Our amazing artist is Nicole Rusk, feel free to check out her portfolio! http://nicolerusk.com/
GP: Since your game is available in both English and Japanese, I was wondering how much Japanese involvement you had with the development of this game?
JZ: I studied Japanese in high school and visited Japan during that time, and I've pretty much always been one of those lame people who loves Japan and video games since I was a kid (*laughs*). Although, I haven't practiced in years so most of the localization credit really goes to Google Translate.
GP: Have you ever played Paca Plus? (Check out our review here) Greatest dating sim ever Y/N? Have you played the sequels that have unfortunately not been translated into English (yet!)?
JZ: (*Laughs*) No, I haven't played Paca Plus! I don't know what that is, but since you said it was a dating sim I am highly intrigued. Is it better than the pigeon dating sim?? (Is anything?!) [Editor's Note: For the uninitiated, Jessica is referring to the one and only Hatoful Boyfriend] I also haven't played the sequels, but I will look into the first one and get back to you (*laughs*).
Note: This is a screenshot is from Paca Plus, not Alpaca Party
GP: What's up next for you guys after this game? Perhaps Alpaca Party 2?
JZ: After all the loose ends are tied up for Alpaca Party (iOS release & Kickstarter goods) I believe we will take some time to focus on our day jobs. (Alpaca Party & Meow Puff Games are side projects for now; that is, until we can accumulate enough funds to support our indie studio full time.)
Our next game is a ways away; however, we will be turning in our cute alpaca and breaking out a super cool, badass shmup (shoot 'em up)! So look forward to that!
A big thanks to Jessica for the interview and her time! Be sure to check out Alpaca Party on Google Play right here!
And if you enjoyed this interview, leave a comment below letting us know what you thought!

Majesco has been the most recent publisher to face financial issues in recent years, especially after having to resort to a reverse stock split in order to avoid being delisted from NASDAQ earlier this year. And now, with no new major games planned for release in 2015, the company is downsizing as a result.
It's unknown how many layoffs there were, but the move seems to have impacted Majesco's Midnight City indie label, where VP of Publishing Casey Lynch has confirmed that he was let go, as well as Communications Director John Kopp. Midnight City most recently published Double Fine's Costume Quest 2, and plans to bring Gone Home to Wii U next year.
As for Majesco at large, it's possible they could be the next big publisher to go south if things don't turn around soon. Certain strategies they are currently investigating include a possible sale or a merger of the company.
Majesco is best known recently for publishing the Cooking Mama and Zumba series of games.
Source: Game Informer
What are your thoughts on Majesco's current situation?

Last month developer Scott Cawthon announced Five Nights at Freddy's 2 for release via a Steam Greenlight page. The Freddy fandom was hyped despite not knowing when exactly the game might arrive. Well, it's out this week!
Cawthon initially intended to post a demo on November 11th, but decided to just release the game in full. After being quite confused, fans have quickly taken to enjoying this second helping of Five Nights at Freddy's goodness.
The game is available with no launch week discount on Steam for $7.99.

Five Nights at Freddy's is a horror game about taking on the night shift at a Chuck E. Cheese style establishment. Some people might be frightened enough by anamatronic animals as is, but in this game they came to life. After its immense success on Steam the developer has begun work on a sequel.
Five Nights at Freddy's 2 brings you back to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, which appears to have undergone a bit of a redesign. You're the newest night-shift employee tasked with keeping an eye on all anamatronics. This time around there are no doors to lock yourself into a room with, though. So how can you survive meandering robots? Apparently players can don a Freddy head to make them think you're just another machine.
It remains to be seen if the Fight Night at Freddy's fandom will stick around until 2015, but if they do they'll be able to get their hands on Five Night at Freddy's 2. Here's a link to the Greenlight campaign if you want to see the game on Steam.

Developer: The Astronauts
Publisher: The Astronauts
Platform: PC - Steam
Release Date: September 25, 2014
ESRB: N/A (M suggested)
Few narratively-focused games begin quite like The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Most will talk your ear off or attempt to set some mood, but here, you“re dropped right into a forested area. All you get to know is that you“re a psychic detective named Paul Prospero hot on the trail of the â€œEthan Carterâ€ case. With that minute-long introduction out of the way players are free to explore as they see fit.
It“s rare to see modern adventure games actually provide a sense of â€œadventureâ€ when most railroad players down a specific path. In The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, you“ve given the freedom to explore Red Creek Valley in its gorgeous entirety. Areas such as an old mine, church, and dam are visited during a playthrough. Sure, no one seems to be around, but that lends to the supernatural/creepy atmosphere. Those who have a powerful enough computer to run the game at high settings are in for one hell of a visual treat.
The world simply looks incredible. Whether you“re deep in a lush wooded area or crossing a bridge, it“s hard to not stop and admire everything. The game“s painterly style is still present at lower settings but won“t cause nearly as powerful of a response. It“s thanks to the attractive visuals that the main gameplay mechanics - searching and walking a lot - don“t drain on players as much as they otherwise might. With that said, although the scope at first seems immense, you eventually realize a lot is due to smart design tricks. See a heavy bunch of foliage near the end of a path? Yep, that“s an â€œinvisible wallâ€ so there“s no straying too far off the path.
Once you look beyond graphics, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter quickly boils down to a simple series of puzzles. As Paul explores, he comes across a variety of objects in the world which can be interacted with. In fact, almost all items you mess with are those necessary for solving puzzles. After uncovering each object connected to a crime in the area, you“ll then be able to â€œsenseâ€ and play back what occurred there. This requires players to place four to five segments of said event in proper order, but usually this isn“t that tough. Luckily, there“s no restriction on how many times you can retry if it gets set up improperly.
In a way, it“s a bit disappointing that the game offers little else beyond such simple mechanics. With such an inviting landscape it would make sense to expect more locational puzzles, similar to Myst. Instead they just rinse and repeat the same exact gameplay concept a handful of times over. With that said, this is a great way to invite players who aren“t especially skilled with ”typical“ adventure game puzzles. I certainly appreciated rarely having to wrack my brain to make it through the three to five hour experience.
Perhaps the strangest aspect of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is its mystery storyline. No, I“m not going to delve into spoilers or anything, but the whole thing is pretty offbeat. By the end I was still not sure what had happened, what it all meant, and why certain things had occurred, but it was still a neat romp. It doesn“t really appear there“s a need to replay it, either. Considering the short playtime, perhaps it“s worth another playthrough just to get a handle on its story.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter does not overstay its welcome. It deserves credit for offering a large, incredibly pretty landscape to ogle while you explore, too. However, when you get down to the nitty gritty there“s a very samey approach taking to nearly every puzzle in the game. Once you understand the formula you rarely have to worry about exploring too much and getting lost in the process. Now, that doesn“t make this a bad game - not at all. It would have just been nice to see a bit more challenge. Heck, some more non-required objects to interact with would help make the world seem more alive too. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter provides incredibly polished visuals and one unique storyline aside gameplay that doesn“t quite stack up.
Pros:
+ Beautiful scenery
+ Wide area to explore
+ Unusual storyline/storytelling mechanics
Cons:
- Incredibly formulaic puzzle setup
- Most puzzles should prove no challenge
Overall Score: 7 (out of 10)
Good
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter may be one of the most visually stunning adventure games available today; it“s just not the â€œsmartest.â€
Disclosure: This game was reviewed using downloadable Steam code provided by the publisher.

If you've followed Nintendo's relationship with indie developers over the years, the name Dan Adelman is likely familiar to you. He was the one who spearheaded the company's outreach to include indie games on the Wii Shop Channel as well as the more modern 3DS and Wii U eShop. And after 9 years with the House of Mario, Adelman is ready to leave and pursue new ventures.
Specifically, he announced plans to work directly with indie devs in an advisory role, and a post on his new website indicates that he intends to be a sort of evangelist for the indie scene as well, helping to raise awareness of it among the general public.
Adelman reiterated that the split from Nintendo was amicable, though he did discuss certain grievances in an interview on Kotaku with the way the company had tried to stifle his presence on social media and the like due to what he would say not always being "on message" with their own company policy.
He also reiterated that the eShop is in good hands and that there are multiple teams working on it like a well-oiled machine, and that there were "fewer and fewer new battles to wage," also adding, "What fun is getting into an argument if the other person already agrees with you?."
You can expect to hear more about Dan Adelman in the indie development world as he works more directly with them in the coming weeks and months ahead.
Source: Dan-adelman.com, Kotaku
Are you surprised to hear about Adelman's departure?

Developer: Capybara Games
Publisher: Capybara Games
Platform: Xbox 360, Xbox One
ESRB: T for Teen
Release Date: May 14, 2014
This review is based on the Xbox One version of the game
Every so often we see games that mess with the concept of time. Sometimes, the results are quite impressive and other times its just a total headache. Super Time Force“s mechanic is not entirely unique but Capybara Games have managed to do something quite cool with it. Players rewind time, place new characters into battle, and engage in increasingly ridiculous firefights. But is it all fun? Does it measure up to the standards fans have come to expect from Capybara?
Yes, a million times yes. Super Time Force is an astoundingly good new game that is, for now, exclusive to Xbox One and Xbox 360. In the story's beginning, a scientist creates a working time machine. Seconds later, the world is in chaos. Future scientist appears, briefly explains the situation, and forces himself to command a small band of heroes known as the Super Time Force. These folks are tasked with destroying everything that screwed up the space time continuum.
Players take the team and journey through a variety of timeframes, ridding the world of evil. Levels range from a post-apocalyptic wasteland to the age of the dinosaurs, knights and castles, and a handful more. Selecting stages is done similar to a Mega Man game, meaning there“s no required progression path to completion. However, each stage has multiple sections to play through, including boss battles.
The gameplay is where Super Time Force is both familiar and incredibly unique. Played in a 2D side-scrolling fashion, players are tasked with defeating everything that stands in their path. There are a handful of team members to choose from and each offers unique weapons and skills. After selecting who you want to wade through enemies you head out and attempt to kick butt. Thanks to the bullet-ridden landscape, you“ll likely die fast. And that“s where the main hook comes into play. Dying is not the end.
When a character dies, you can simply rewind time. There“s no restriction on how far you can go back, meaning you can even return to the start of the stage if needed. Once you“ve backed up to a suitably safe location, you choose another Super Time Force member (or the same as before) and resume play. A ghost of your previous combatant will appear, doing just as was commanded prior to their death. No matter what, the ghosts will always persist until they reach where they were killed. If you can manage to save them they will actually provide an additional hit point.
Although skilled players might be able to make it through stages with only losing a few out of the 31 given lives, this isn“t enough to save the world. Each level is also timed, meaning you not only have to perform carefully enough to not use your stock of lives but also play fast. This is practically impossible when you“ve got 10 seconds on the clock and a giant boss to beat. Or is it? Just use your powers to set up a ton of Time Force characters and each will whittle away at a boss health meter. Stacking up teammates to increase attack power is a common theme in the game. It takes a little bit of practice to get right but proves a very powerful part of the player“s arsenal.
The game might seem like it“s pure action goodness, but there“s actually a lot of thinking that goes into successful playthroughs. This is because the ghost partners play as you instructed them initially and will not do other things. For example, when coming across a boss with moving hit points, simply telling your team to shoot forward will not work. Figuring out how to place each teammate and which of their skills works best to the given situation might take a few tries. Usually these moments prove far more fun than frustrating.
No review of Super Time Force would be complete without appraisal of the graphics and music. Many games make use of the pixel art style but few can make it look as good as Capybara Games. The colors are blocky, bright, and each character is humorously distinctive. Screenshots fail to capture how attractive it looks in motion. Listening to the soundtrack also makes it feel like you“ve just inserted a cart into a retro console rather than playing a supposedly ”next gen“ game. In this case, that“s a good thing. The purposefully hammy writing only strengthens the comparison.
Because of the puzzling aspects of character placement and choice, there are no multiplayer modes included. However, there are leaderboards which are probably going to become very competitive soon. If you don“t care about that, then you may not get long to adore the game, as its six stages take around four hours to complete. The experience is great, but it“s a shame there wasn“t just a tad more to Super Time Force.
While you“re playing, Super Time Force provides an exhilarating (possibly even exhausting) experience beyond any 2D action games that have come before it. The unique time mechanics add a layer of strategy which isn“t keen on punishing players. No matter what your playstyle, it“s easy to have fun screwing around. Sometimes, that“s all you need from a game and Super Time Force certainly delivers.
Pros:
+ Time mechanic is incredibly well-executed and neat to toy with
+ A team of up to 16 unique characters ready to handle any situation
+ Great presentation with lovely pixel art, music, and goofy writing
Cons:
- Having only six time periods to explore means the experience is over rather quickly
Overall Score: 9.0 (out of 10)
Fantastic
Super Time Force is an incredible 2D action game with creative puzzle elements that non-Xbox owners should be jealous of (at least until they can play it themselves via ports!).
Disclosure: This game was reviewed using downloadable code provided by the publisher

The Humble Bundle people have been outrageously busy this year. Not only do they have their mainstay "Humble Bundle" but now also have a store and weekly bundles. Yesterday they started up a new promotion called the Humble Daily Bundle which promises to provide a different bundle every 24 hours. The first set was a return of the Deep Silver Bundle.
Today the bundle in question is the Humble Daily Bundle from Outer Space. It's a tad less impressive, offering only three games in all. Paying what you want (over $1) grants X3: Terran Conflict. Beating the average price adds Universe Sandbox. Finally, paying over $10 unlocks Early Access title Kinectic Void. Each game includes a Steam key.
The Humble Daily Bundle is a two-week only event. Most bundles will be brand new but more past bundles may pop up!

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